Joint-guard.



No. 689,837. v Patented Dec. 24, l90l.

' C. B. WHITNEY.

JOINT GUARD. (Application filed my 16, 1900.)

(No Modal.)

FFICE.

CHARLES E. WHITNEY, OF CHICOPEE FALLS, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO VICTOR SPORTING GOODS COMPANY, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

UNrrE STATES PAT NT JOINT-GUARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 689,837, dated December 2 1 Application filed May 16,1900. Serial No. 16,869. (No model.) I

To aZZ whom it may concern: and elbow guards c and d are all made from Be it known that I, CHARLES B. \VHITNEY, stiff leather a, heavily padded with felt f, a citizen of the United States of America, rewhereby the wearer is protected against abrasiding at Chicopee Falls, in the county of sion in-case of a fall or if a blow is delivered 5 Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have on one of the protected parts. All of the 55 invented new and useful Improvements in guards except the members I) are made of Joint-Guards, of which the following is a sole leather, which is moistened and pressed specification. into the proper shape for the shoulder, knee,

This invention relates to guards or protecor elbow, and then the paddingfis stitched to tors worn by athletes who participate in certo the edges of the guards. This may be of 60 tain games; and the object of the invention felt or any other material having the requiis to provide improved knee, elbow,and shoulsite softness, and it generally is trimmed off der guards which while affording complete flush with the guards; but, if desired, for some protection to those parts of the body most purposes it may be allowed to project a little I 5 liable to injury in such games as foot-ball, beyond the edge of the guards, as shown in Fig. 65

for example, may yet be worn under the outer 4. Straps g g are looped through the edges of clothing without discomfort and without obthe shoulder-guards and pass under the arms, structing themovements of the wearer in any as shown, and are made adjustable, whereby way. the guards a may be drawn down onto the The invention consists in the construction shoulder as firmly as desired. Straps h h ex- 70 of the said guards, all as fully described in tend from one of the guards at across the chest the following specification, and set forth in and back of the wearer. One end of each strap ths claim. is preferably secured to one guard and the In the drawings forming part of this speciother end is looped through an aperture i in v fication, Figure 1 shows in front elevation the other and then is turned back upon itself. 75 the figure of a man having applied to him the This part is provided with eyelets or holes guards which form the subject of thisinvenpunched in the strap, through which a cord tion. Fig. 2 is a side and rear View of the may be passed to bind the turned-back end same. Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective View, to the other part of the strap. By this means partly in section, showing the construction the two guards maybe adapted to people hav- 8o of the shoulder-guards. Fig. 4is an enlarged ing varying chest dimensions. Of course perspective View of one of the knee or elbow buckles cannot be used as a fastening device guards and shows a slight modification of the for these straps, as they would be likely to fastening device as compared with that of the inflict wounds. The guards b are also supother figures. ported on the straps h, as shown in Fig. 3, 85

" Referring now to the drawings, the shoulthe straps being passed through loops jj, cut der-guards comprise two separate pieces for in the leather covering of the guards near each shoulder-via, the joint-guard proper their ends, as shown. These guards b may (indicated by a) and the narrow strip 1), lying be moved along the straps it until they bear between the edge of the guard at and the neck on that part of the shoulder which it is de- 0 of the wearer, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and sired to protect. Preferably the inner edges designed especially to protect the collar-bone of the guards b are curved, as shown at k 70, and adjacent parts. A glance at Fig. 3 shows to adapt them to fit the neck of the wearer. how the parts a and b are supported on the The guards b are, as stated, made of thinwearer and how they are held in certain relaner leather than the other guards, the latter 95 tion one to the other, and it shows also the being substantially unyielding, whereas themeans of adjustment of the fastening devices, guards I) should be more or less pliable to fit whereby the guards may be adapted to perthe shoulder properly. It is obvious that sons having different chest measurements. other materials than leather may be used for The shoulder-guards a and b and the knee the guards a,c,and d. Forinstance, leather- 'Ioo board, so called, might be substituted therefor; but leather is preferable.

If desired, the form of fastening shown in Fig. 4 may be used. This consists in passing both ends of the strap h or 9 through apertures in the edge'of the guards and then turning back both ends upon the strap and passing the cord through holes in each end of the strap and by means of the cord drawing the ends together.

The knee and elbow guards are of substantially the same form, but differ slightly in dimensions, the knee-guard being somewhat the larger. These are pressed into shape in the same manner as the shoulder-guards a above described and are suitably padded and provided With straps, as shown in the drawings.

In making these guards, the leather or other material is first cut into pieces having substantially the shape of the segment of a sphere whose ends have been rounded off. These pieces are then put between suitable disks and pressed into spherical shape, whereby they are so formed that they will be well adapted to cover the shoulder, elbow, orknee,

the rounded ends of the guard constituting the natural points of attachment for the retaining-straps, and the spherical-shaped segment allowing ample room for the easy flexure of the joint.

By means of these guards the wearer is protected against injury by reason of violent falls, such as are frequent in various athletic games, and, as they are molded to fit the form closely, they may be worn under the outer garments.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

A guard for the purpose described consisting of two molded shells of leather or analogous material secured together by straps, in combination with two U -shaped guards Whose ends have a sliding engagement with said straps, said shells and said U-shaped guards being provided with a lining of resilient material, substantially as described.

CHARLES B. WHITNEY.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM H. CHAPIN, K. I. CLEMoNs. 

